


I've Seen Worse

by ScorchedSiren (Sailor_Mercury)



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, On the Run, POV Alternating, POV Third Person, Refugees
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-10
Updated: 2015-09-10
Packaged: 2018-04-20 03:38:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4772012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sailor_Mercury/pseuds/ScorchedSiren
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The door creaked as it opened, and the first thing Teresa noticed was the smell of mothballs and wet towels. She flicked the switch on as she stepped in, dropping her duffel bag on the floor as she looked around. The floors were cheap and were covered in a thin sheet of mist from the humidity. The white walls were covered with streaks, years and years of nicotine leaving their mark. And as she walked over and examined the bed, she noticed the few tiny holes that had been eaten into the duvet that laid across the queen size bed. She glanced over her shoulder and her eyes met a familiar pair of dark brown ones. They looked back at her apologetically, guiltily, but Teresa just smiled back. </p>
<p>“I’ve seen worse.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	I've Seen Worse

**Author's Note:**

> There's not enough Brenderesa in the world, so I took a shot at it (Republished under my new psuedonym)
> 
> Music Inspiration: Poison and Wine by The Civil Wars

The door creaked as it opened, and the first thing Teresa noticed was the smell of mothballs and wet towels. She flicked the switch on as she stepped in, dropping her duffel bag on the floor as she looked around. The floors were cheap and were covered in a thin sheet of mist from the humidity. The white walls were covered with streaks, years and years of nicotine leaving their mark. And as she walked over and examined the bed, she noticed the few tiny holes that had been eaten into the duvet that laid across the queen size bed. She glanced over her shoulder and her eyes met a familiar pair of dark brown ones. They looked back at her apologetically, guiltily, but Teresa just smiled back. 

“I’ve seen worse.”

***

Teresa laid on her side that night, her eyes focused on the moonlight that streamed through the window. The TV cast a hazy glow across the room but it was just static. It couldn’t distract her. 

Her eyes were focused on the moon, and her mind was focused on a memory. It felt like it’d been years, but Teresa knew it’d only been months, weeks even since that time… the time when she could sit on the roof of her building at night in peace, staring at the stars and the moon and wondering what the future had in store for her. Now the future was clear. Tomorrow they’d be in a different state, and tomorrow night they’d be in a different motel. That was the routine; that was her life now. She couldn’t see past the next day because she didn’t know if there’d even be a next day. 

She sighed, glancing at the body sleeping beside her. Light snores came from their lips and Teresa felt her heart lift just slightly at the sound she’d grown so accustomed to. She sat up, trying her best not to disturb the person before quietly padding across the room and to the bathroom. She looked it over once, noticing the cracks that climbed up the walls of the tub, and the faucet was leaky, dripping every few minutes. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in. She’d seen worse. She opened her eyes and leaned forward, turning the faucet all the way to the left. The water splashed against the tub as it began to fill and Teresa slipped out of her shorts, grabbing the hem of her shirt and pulling it over her head. She let the sound of the water fill her ears, trying to drown out her thoughts as she sat down on the edge of the tub carefullt, her fingertips swirling on the surface.

Her eyes wandered to the walls that surrounded her. The bathroom was cramped and she felt slightly suffocated but she had to shake her head, reminding herself it wasn’t that bad. She managed to avoid the rest of her thoughts, shutting her brain down as she turned back to the water, watching it swish back and forth with the flick of her fingers

Once it was full she stepped into it, sitting on the floor of the tub and stretching her legs out. They hit the other end before they were fully extended and she felt her heart lurch at the small action. She felt a lump form in her throat as she pulled her knees up, her arms wrapping around them and hugging them to her chest as she finally let it all in…

***

It was a Tuesday, and it was 11:37 at night when she got the call. 

“Hello?” She’d answered it so casually, expecting a sexual innuendo or a witty remark as a greeting. Instead, the sound of labored breathing and a shaky voice filled her ears. She shot up in bed, raking a hand through her hair. “Babe, what’s wrong?” She asked, dread pumping through her veins as she listened closely. She could hear the distress, and it scared her. 

“I did something. Something bad.” The voice on the other line answered. Before Teresa could even answer there was a broken sob on the other line followed by unsteady breaths. “I fucked up, Teresa. I need to leave.” Her heart dropped and the world seemed to freeze at those words.

Teresa stayed silent for what felt like minutes, maybe even hours before she spoke again. “When?” She was greeted by silence, then an inhale. 

“Tonight.” And there was something unspoken in that word, a tone of finality. It sounded like a goodbye, and Teresa wouldn’t have that. She couldn’t. 

“I’m coming.”

***

And she came. They met in the alley behind her apartment and then they were speeding out of town with a pocket full of cash and no destination in mind.   
And here she was, sitting in room temperature water that was lukewarm to begin with, listening to a leaky faucet drip every few minutes. She’d left the light off, using the glow from the TV as her guide. As she sat in the water that was slowly flowing down the broken drain, her hair clinging to her skin, she felt tears pierce the back of her eyes and a lump she’d been swallowing for weeks surface in her throat.

Teresa didn’t regret her decision, not for one second. But she was tired. She was tired of run down motels and eating every meal at diners. She was tired of having to watch her back everywhere she went, she was tired of being in a car for 12 hours a day. She was just tired of being tired.

And she couldn’t hold it in anymore. Tears spilled over her eyelashes and fell down her cheeks. She bit her lip, remembering the person sleeping in the next room but it was useless. Everything had been bottled up for too long and as soon as she had went back to that memory, it was like the dam had broken. 

Tears blurred her vision, hot and fast, and cries caught in her throat. She refused to open her mouth, she refused to let them out. She held them in but it was no use as the shadow of a familiar figure appeared in the door way. 

“Reese.” Brenda said softly, walking into the light. Teresa looked up at her, glassy eyes and all, and she’d never felt more lost and broken in her life. Her words were gone, and all she could do was finally let out the muffled cries she’d been holding back. 

Brenda didn’t even hesitate as she sat on the edge of the tub, resting Teresa’s head against her leg as she ran her fingers through the other girl’s dark, wet hair. The only sounds that filled the room, that filled the night, were Teresa’s soft, gentle cries and the static of the TV. 

Brenda’s eyes were fixed on the girl in the tub, wandering over the curve of creamy, porcelain thighs and the delicate fingers that gripped at her knees. She’d felt the guilt building up – in her veins, in her gut, in her heart – for months. Hell, she’d felt guilty even as she’d dialed the number that night, all those moons ago. She called Teresa because she knew Teresa would come with her. And the reason she knew that was because if the situation were reversed, she’d follow Teresa in a heartbeat. She’d follow that girl anywhere. 

As they sat there in silence, Brenda felt the weight of their situation on her shoulders. Here was the girl she loved, sad and vulnerable and broken, and it was all her fault. She felt her own emotions start to swirl around in her head but she swallowed any remorse and self-pity she felt. She shouldn’t get to cry, not after this. And she didn’t. She just tried to soothe the girl that was a mix of tiredness and tears.

Teresa felt drained in every possible way – physically, mentally, emotionally. She was half slumped over in the tub by the time her cries had subsided and the tears had been shed. There was nothing left of herself to give and she wasn’t even sure at this point if her legs would let her stand. Her eyelids were starting to droop and her limbs felt wobbly. 

“Here.” Brenda said quietly, reaching for the towel that hung behind her and wrapping it around the smaller girl’s frame. Teresa’s fingers grasped onto the edges, pulling it to her body as she sat in the empty tub. Brenda couldn’t take her eyes off of the girl in front of her… she felt how her lips were turned downwards, she knew her eyes were probably dark. 

“I’m so sorry, Teresa.” Brenda’s voice was soft against the silence, breaking through it gently. “This is all my fault… I never should’ve called you that night. I should’ve left and never looked back. You deserve better than this, better than me. I fucked up so badly, and I didn’t know what to do…” Brenda trailed off, her voice wavering. She let out a choked sound, a mix of a hollow laugh and a shaky breath as her eyes landed on Teresa’s bloodshot cobalt ones. 

“I’m sorry. I just… I hate myself for doing this to you…” Brenda trailed off, her hand reaching out and cupping the other girl’s face. She let herself smile as she ran the pad of her thumb across Teresa’s cheek, feeling the warm, soft skin that stretched over her cheekbones. She let her thumb trail down the other girl’s face, tracing lightly over the familiar pair of rosy lips before she pulled away. 

The room was silent except for the sounds of their breathing. Brenda couldn’t tear her eyes off the pair of blue ones that seemed to be the only light in the room – the only light in her world anymore. 

“I don’t regret it.” Teresa’s voice was small, a whisper, but it felt like an echo. Brenda tilted her head as she looked down at the dark haired girl. Teresa’s hand reached up, grabbing hers and their fingers threaded together, intertwining. Pale and tan, cold and warm, delicate and calloused. “I don’t regret coming with you.” 

And Brenda knew it was the truth. No matter how tired they were, no matter how unbearable things got to be, at the end of the day Teresa was by her side. “I know you don’t. But you shouldn’t have to live like this.”

There was a blanket that settled over the two of them, and Teresa looked down at their laced fingers. Brenda expected the other girl to pull away but instead, she felt her hand being gripped tighter. 

“I don’t care. I love you, that’s all that matters.” Brenda felt her heart swell as she squeezed the other girl’s hand back. She let out a breathy sigh, watching as Teresa’s eyes slipped shut once again before slowly opening. 

“Come on. Let’s get you in bed.” Brenda stood on her feet, bending over and hooking her arms under Teresa’s knees and sliding the other arm behind her back. The other girl just wrapped her arms around her neck and held on tightly as Brenda lifted her up. 

“I love you, Bren.” Teresa whispered, her voice muddled with fatigue and sleep. Brenda felt her lips quirk up as she made her way back to the bed, gently placing the dark haired girl down. 

“I know, Reese. I love you, too.” Brenda leaned down, pressing her lips against the place where pale skin and her dark hair collided before sliding onto her own side of the bed. 

“And don’t worry, my love. I’ll fix this soon.”


End file.
